I had the good fortune to make my way up to Cheshire today and play Prestbury. I must admit to knowing very little of the course other than Colt is the architect of record and that Morrison may have helped with the design at some stage. The course sits on a very hilly property not far south of Manchester near Macclesfield in a well heeled area. In truth, the course is likely a bit too mountainous for ideal golf, but Colt dealt with the severity of the terrain admirably. The card tells us the total yardage from the daily tees is not much shy of 6200, but as is so often the case with Colt's work the course can play longer. I was surprised to read the SSS is one shot less than the par of 71 because the course seemed to play fairly difficult despite not having many onerous requirements. Finally, other than the hills, my over-riding impression of Prestbury is that of an American course due in part to its fine presentation that often eludes even some of the finer courses in the UK. On to the photos.
We get a sense of scorecard length not meaning much on the first hole, a short par 5 of 459 yards, but one which takes two very good swipes to reach the green. I must admit to having a sinking feeling when I spied the Oakland Hills syndrome of bunker left and bunker right. Two decent shots leaves a wedge in the hand, but judging the depth of the green is difficult.
#2 takes the golfer down hill between more equi-distant bunkers right and left. Fortunately, the fairway bunkering improves as we move through the round. The course says hello on the third. If one is long enough the drive is blind with a landing zone slipping sharply away from the crest of a hill. Below is the approach from right of the fairway to a magnificent green site tagged to a rapidly rising hill.
A mid-length one-shotter; #4.
The fifth is a short par 4 that is reachable in theory, but I am sure the photo explains why it isn't in reality. I reckon its better to lay back off the tee leaving the length of the green available for the approach.
Other than the orientation of the approach, the 5th is distinguished from the 3rd by two bunkers on the plateau. From the 6th teeit is apparent why driving pin high isn't clever. Here is a look from the front of the 6th tee. I am told by Mark R that Paul Turner has photos of this hole with sand completely surrounding the green!
I don't quite know how Colt managed it, but the second par 5, #6, is another that should be reachable on the card, but it plays longer than its listed 496 yards. The second climbs the hill and crosses the entrance road. However, it is the turning left of the hole which makes it difficult to get up in two.
The hilly nature of the course hides the fact that Prestbury is compact. The seventh is another good short hole without being special. The 6th green is in the immediate foreground.
Below is a closer look at the green and its hidden surprise.
The 8th is a very short two-shotter which bends hard left and would be drivable for the flat bellies except for the trees guarding the left corner (and I suspect the 7th tee). This is a curious hole because one must challenge the unseen hazard through the fairway to gain the best angle of approach.
The side finishes with a hole of monster proportions. At 455 yards and climbing about 50 feet to the highest point of the course for the approach, the ninth is a hole which will require a deft short game for most to earn a par.
On the whole the bunkers are well placed and attractive.
From here my well struck hybrid came up miles short of the target.
After two long and accurate blows many will have a third similar to this. The greens at Prestbury are typical Colt, nothing flashy, but often beguiling. That said, Colt was not adverse to the odd adventurous green as this three tier green demonstrates; it majestically caps this wonderous hole.
I know little of the science of course routing, but Prestbury strikes me as one of outstanding merit. The back nine is routed around the front in a sort of horse shoe fashion with the 6th green and #s 7 and 8 being the open ended part of the shoe. Interestingly, the back nine covers the highest part of the property at the 10th tee and lowest part at #12 green with an ease few architects could match. While the walk back up to the clubhouse involves some gentle climbing it never requires a long green to tee walk.
The 10th is a deceiving knob to knob hole with a rather narrow green and well protected by sand left and right. Perhaps the green complex is a little too similar to the 8th, but it isn't a bad hole for that. Folks may be wondering why the course is so green. It is my impression that compared to many parts of England, this is an area often inundated by precipitation. In any case, given the severity of the land, I am not sure keen conditions would be the most suitable.
The final par 5 is perhaps the the best. The drive requires a precision strike to the left side of high spot in the fairway. Anything too long on this line will run down to a wood. Anything terribly far right of this line makes going for the green in two an arduous task due to a lovely tree guarding the inside of the dogleg. The 12th is visually odd from the tee. We must hit over a garden hedge and shape the shot left to right to earn a good angle of approach. Thankfully, the hole improves immeasurably due to the approach. The golfer's first glimpse of a green is the 15th in the background. I thought this was the intended target until walking further up the fairway. I stated earlier that this green is the low part of the course and because of this the club recently carried out extensive drainage work.
While the slight uphill drive for number 13 is less than ideal, we are treated to one of the highlights of Prestbury upon reaching the green. I was immediately reminded of Harborne's 7th upon seeing this complex of unabashedly manufactured architecture. #7 at Harborne below.
The use of hills at Prestbury reminded me of my younger days playing a Ross gem, Grosse Ile, and the delightful 14th was like going home. The player may have the choice of driving over the knob to the valley floor for a flick wedge approach at the risk of catching a downhill lie to an uphill green. Alternatively, one can play for the top of the knob and be further back, but have a level lie to a green on more less the same elevation. It may not be the best hole on the course, but on this day, it was certainly my favourite. However, my thoughts on this matter are undoubtably influenced by the situation of the tee shot because we stand at a marvelous confluence of holes. Like Ross often did, Colt demonstrates a remarkable economy of design. The 13th, 16th, 17th and 1st greens and 14, 17 and 18th tees all nearby. Below is the tee shot with the 16th green and 17th tee to the right and the 18th tee immediately in front of us.
From nearest to furthest is the 17th green, 13th green and 1st green.
The lovely approach to #14. Notice how the left edge of the green flows up to the medal tee for #15. Prestbury is packed with little details which help distinguish the course as true Colt gem.
While the drive for 15 is attractive, the meat of this hole is in the approach. The green slides away down the hill beyond and the cross bunker effectively hides the landing zone for the approach unless one can hit a very long drive.
We now turn back for home and play the only bunker free hole on the course. The 16th isn't a terribly long par 4, but positioning is crucial. Anything down the left leaves a severe side-hill lie. If one manages to hit the fairway a magnificent opportunity to use the terrain is evident. One can play short and right and let the slope turn the ball to the hole.
...However, should the player misjudge the pace, a scar hollow to the right awaits. This is without a doubt one of the cleverest of Colt holes I have come across.
Knowing how skilled Colt was at creating endearing par 3s, perhaps my expectations are too high, but up to now the short holes have been good without being memorable. The penultimate hole changes this perception because it is a corker. I suspect the steep bank short of the green serves to make the hole look far longer than its 137 yards. Additionally, the entire putting surface can't be seen from the tee as it curls right around the bunker. Finally, in wet conditions, I think it is entirely possible to hit a spinning shot to the false front section of the green and watch it spin a considerable distance back down the bank.
The home hole is slightly disappointing, but that is likely due to the collection of creativity experienced during the previous three or four hours. That said, this hole does take some playing as the two tier green is deceptively deep and well protected by sand.
Because the terrain at Prestbury is unruly and it therefore seems to me there may be some playability issues if the course were keen it is difficult to give it a 1*. That said, I would like to go back and see the course when it is drier because my fears may be unfounded. In any case, because there are so many compelling (four All England candidates: 3, 5, 9 & 16) holes I have a lot of time for Prestbury and anybody traveling through the area should strongly consider giving it a go. One final word, the more Colt courses I play the more I realize the importance of turf quality. I can find no discernible differences in the design quality of Prestbury compared to Colt's more famous heathland courses. What is, however, very noticeable, is the difference in turf quality between parkland and heathland golf. 2009
Ciao